Community Forums

jds119 · 02-03-2020, 10:03 AM

Hi,

We are about to buy our first RV. We are purchasing a new 2020 Thor Aria. Is it typical practice to hire someone to inspect the RV prior to purchase for a brand new RV? If so, what does that look like? What type of inspection do we need?What else should we consider doing in the buying process?

CountryB · 02-03-2020, 02:24 PM

Not on a new Coach. You have a warranty.
The important thing to do is to go over all the equipment (try everything) with the Dealership before you drive off - then if you find anything not working you can get a repair scheduled (or have it fixed before you take it off the lot).

MSHappyCampers · 02-03-2020, 03:09 PM

Hi ! Welcome to IRV2! We're sure glad you joined the gang!

I've never heard of anyone having a new coach inspected! Have fun and keep her between the ditches!

Good luck, happy trails, and God bless!

vito.a · 02-03-2020, 03:26 PM

I agree with Mike and Joe. However I would encourage you to perform an online search for Thor motor home reliability.

AZ RV'r · 02-03-2020, 03:56 PM

Speaking from experience.... I bought from LaMesa in 2018.... Make sure you negotiate with the dealer that you will inspect the coach first and will create a list of items to be repaired or addressed. Then on a separate day you will return to re-inspect that all repairs have been completed then money will exchange hands. I wish I had done this. The day of my final coach walk-thru day and the money and paperwork, for me, was the same day. When I found a few little things, it needed a separate appointment and that took 45 days to complete. LaMesa sucks for service so wherever you are purchasing, don't let something like this happen to you.

They might claim that they could do all the repairs and you could still walk away, so some sort of good faith deposit might be needed to make this happen.

Good Luck!

jaearhart · 02-03-2020, 04:11 PM

I bought a 2018 ( new never titled ) in Jan 2019. Did walk thru with sales service rep and punched items I made. There was no factory qa/qc check list to reference. If I didnt see it it was regarded as acceptable. So not to type forever , today here on Feb 3 one year later it's in the service center for factory warranty repairs. Been in 8 times for at least 25 punched items. If ever again I'd only buy after witnessing every item is as sales said it is.

mrboyer · 02-03-2020, 04:18 PM

My experience with Thor products, I would definitely have a very detailed inspection and agreement that all would be repaired before any money is exchanged. My son just had a used motor home inspection done. Cost was $625.00 which he had to pay. He walked away from the deal.

Mudfrog · 02-04-2020, 07:46 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by CountryB

Not on a new Coach. You have a warranty.
The important thing to do is to go over all the equipment (try everything) with the Dealership before you drive off - then if you find anything not working you can get a repair scheduled (or have it fixed before you take it off the lot).

I would NOT go the bolded above route. If problems are found, have them repaired before taking delivery. Don't drive the new one off the lot until everything is to your satisfaction.

As far as inspecting, I normally wouldn't consider paying someone to do it, especially on a new rig with a warranty. But I suppose that if it's your first RV ever, it might not be a bad idea to have someone come in to check things out. If you've been around RVs for a while, then you should at least have an inkling of how things work and things to look out for.

BOOZE TRAVEL · 02-04-2020, 12:18 PM

I would have it inspected. The cost is minimal and you can make them fix the things that get caught on the spot without waiting for service appts as long as the money is in you pocket and not theirs.
I had a new custom built home inspected and found out the HVAC guys had cut a floor joist under the water heater to accommodate their duct work. No one ever would have seen it until the floor started to sag. $400 well spent.
Just my opinion

DutchmenSport · 02-04-2020, 12:38 PM

I would suggest spending some time looking a different campers and try to find the deficiencies in them. You may have better success looking a used vehicles as they will have wear and tear on them. Look at them with a very critical eye and soon you'll spot almost immediately the flaws. Then, when you look at your camper with a critical eye, you'll know what to look for and where potential future failures could occur.

On a new camper, some of those deficiencies will not unearth until they are driven off the lot. Some things may take several months before you see them. Screws come loose, door don't shut right, frame flexing causes cracks in the walls, or because of bouncing on the road, things break. There's no way to predict that. And they will happen, regardless of how much you pre-inspect a new camper.

I don't think you need to hire anyone to inspect your potential new camper. You do need to be educated yourself. And be willing to walk away from the deal if everything is not to your satisfaction BEFORE you sing the final sales agreement.

But, in order to get YOU started and save yourself some money on a bogus inspector that probably has no clue about anything anyway, here's a web site that has a pretty good "punch list" of items that you should check out throughly at the pre-delivery inspection (PDI). Hope this helps, and saves you some money: Click here.

lakings10 · 02-04-2020, 12:44 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jds119

Hi,

We are about to buy our first RV. We are purchasing a new 2020 Thor Aria. Is it typical practice to hire someone to inspect the RV prior to purchase for a brand new RV? If so, what does that look like? What type of inspection do we need?What else should we consider doing in the buying process?

Have you looked at anything else like a Discovery or another brand in the same price range? Thor literally has the worst quality control in the industry. I've had a palazzo and hurricane, and will never give Thor another penny. You've been warned lol.

Isaac-1 · 02-04-2020, 05:07 PM

It may not be common practice, but it can certainly be a good idea, keep in mind that a detailed inspection by an NRVIA certified inspector is likely to cost less than 1-2% of the purchase cost of an RV. This will not be a 10-15 minute walk through, this would be 4-6 man hours of constant work for the average RV, maybe 6-10 man hours (inspector plus helper) for a larger diesel pusher.

Pro RVI · 02-12-2020, 09:49 PM

You should definitely have the unit inspected prior to completing the purchase - even if its new.
As an NRVIA certified level 2 inspector and RVIA/RVDA tech, [moderator edit], I have inspected many new units of all classes. I have yet to inspect a new or used RV that didnt have issues - sometimes life safety issues!

Many dealers limit the time they allow their techs to spend on a PDI, sometimes only a couple of hours! This was told to me directly from the techs themselves.
Hiring a competent, trained inspector working on YOUR behalf would be money well spent. Have any issues discovered during the inspection repaired before you complete the sale and accept delivery.

txcpl · 02-13-2020, 03:11 AM

As a newby Rv'er, I assume from your post, you would be wise to have it inspected prior to purchase. RV's are being built so fast that oftentimes quality control seems to be lacking. Any salesperson's job is to sell the inventory and get it off the lot, not to tell you about or how to look for the problems with the RV.
Caveat Emptor!